Major AI Startups Secure Over $100 Billion in Funding in 2025

In 2025, the startup ecosystem witnessed a significant surge in funding, particularly within the artificial intelligence sector. According to data from Crunchbase, a total of 15 companies raised venture funding rounds exceeding $2 billion, collectively securing more than $100 billion. The most notable of these was OpenAI, which achieved a remarkable $40 billion investment led by SoftBank in March, marking a historic moment in venture capital financing.

Top Funding Rounds of 2025

The following companies represented the largest funding rounds of the year, showcasing the growing interest and investment in AI technologies.

OpenAI took the lead by announcing its record-setting $40 billion investment on March 31. This financing deal stands as the largest venture investment ever recorded. As part of the agreement, SoftBank aims to construct a syndicate of co-investors contributing $10 billion of the total, while it plans to fund the remaining $30 billion, including $10 billion through debt.

In June, Scale AI, based in San Francisco, raised $14.3 billion from Meta, achieving a valuation of $29 billion. This company specializes in providing training data and model evaluation for AI applications. Following this, Anthropic, another generative AI firm, secured $13 billion in September, elevating its valuation to $183 billion. This funding round was led by Iconiq Capital, with participation from Fidelity and Lightspeed Venture Partners.

Another noteworthy entry, Project Prometheus, focused on applying AI to physical tasks, launched with $6.2 billion in funding. Reports indicate that Jeff Bezos will co-lead the company as CEO alongside physicist Vik Bajaj.

In the same vein, xAI, founded by Elon Musk, attracted $5.3 billion in a funding round this summer. Since its inception, the Palo Alto-based firm has raised more than $22 billion in equity and debt financing.

Other Significant Rounds

Following closely behind, Databricks announced a Series L financing in December, raising over $4 billion at a valuation of $134 billion. The company experienced more than a 55% year-over-year growth, achieving a revenue run-rate of $4.8 billion.

In March, Anthropic raised an additional $3.5 billion, further solidifying its status in the AI sector. The funding was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, valuing the San Francisco-based company at $61.5 billion.

The defense technology startup Anduril Industries raised $2.5 billion in a Series G round in June, significantly increasing its valuation to $30.5 billion. Another notable mention is Anysphere, which secured $2.3 billion in November for its coding automation platform, achieving a post-money valuation of $29.3 billion.

Several companies tied for smaller rounds of $2 billion. Polymarket, known for its prediction market platform, received an investment from the Intercontinental Exchange, while Reflection AI, a developer of training models, also raised $2 billion in October.

Additional firms in this group include Safe Superintelligence, co-founded by former OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, and Thinking Machines Lab, led by former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati, both securing $2 billion each for their respective projects.

The cryptocurrency exchange Binance received a similar amount in March from Abu Dhabi-based investment firm MGX, while Mistral AI, based in France, was valued at $13.2 billion in its own $2 billion funding round led by ASML.

These funding rounds reflect a growing trend towards substantial investments in AI technology, highlighting the industry’s potential for innovation and growth in the coming years. With numerous startups securing large sums, 2025 is poised to be a pivotal year for artificial intelligence development.